These tips can help lower your risk of cancer

Want to lower your cancer risk? Get your body moving.

That’s the conclusion of a recent study of cancer incidence and exercise habits among 600,000 Americans over 30. Researchers from Emory University and the American Cancer Society found that 300 minutes of moderate-intensity exercise a week could prevent up to 46,000 cases a year, including colon, stomach, kidney, breast, esophageal, endometrial and bladder tumors. They estimated that 3 percent of all cancer cases, excluding non-melanoma skin cancers, were linked to inactivity. Some cancers were much higher: About 17 percent of stomach cancer cases were linked to inactivity, according to a report in The New York Times.

“We’ve known for a long time that sedentary behavior is linked to a higher risk of cancer, but we didn’t really have the data to push the physical activity,” said Kristine Whaples, an exercise physiologist at Cape Cod and Falmouth hospitals and the coordinator of Cape Cod Healthcare’s Living Fit for You Cancer Wellness Program for cancer patients.

How does exercise help? In several ways, according to Whaples and other research on exercise and the immune system. For example:

• It can lower levels of hormones, such as estrogen, that feed some tumors;
• It helps regulate glucose levels;
• It reduces inflammation, which has been shown to contribute to cancers, diabetes and heart disease;
• It strengthens the immune system to help fight tumors;
• It helps prevent obesity, a high-risk factor for colon, prostate, breast and other cancers.

Whaples works regularly with cancer patients and she knows it’s sometimes tough to get off the couch to get moving. But she emphasizes that five hours a week or an average of 45 minutes a day of moderate activity such as brisk walking is doable for most people. Experts recommend tracking your heart rate with a fitness tracker but you can also use this simple guideline: You should be able to have a comfortable conversation while exercising, but if you can sing, you’re not working hard enough.

Whaples uses what she calls the easy-moderate-hard scale to judge how much to push her body on a particular day.

“If I’m out walking and it feels moderate, that’s a good level workout,” she said. “If it’s easy, that gives me the OK to push a little harder. If it feels hard, I might scale back a bit….You have to listen to your body. You can’t push through because there are other injuries that are going to prevent you from sticking to your routine.”

If you’re ready to get moving, here are some other tips from Whaples:

• Consult an exercise physiologist or other medical professional before you start an exercise routine.
• If you’re not ready to go back to the gym, consider a Zoom class with a real-time trainer. That gives you the opportunity to ask questions.
• Don’t forget strength training, whether it’s using weights or resistance, or doing a class like Pilates, which uses your own body as a strength-builder. Researchers around the world are looking at different types of exercise and what specifically helps, according to an Australian video that Whaples shares with her patients.
• Warm up for five or 10 minutes before you set out on a walk or run.
• Make sure you have the right footwear to avoid problems like plantar fasciitis.
• Remember that exercise is only one piece of cancer prevention. The American Institute for Cancer Research, which funds research into prevention based on lifestyle and nutrition, lists other cancer-fighting factors that can make a difference such as: Maintain a healthy weight; be physically active; eat a diet rich in whole grains, vegetables, fruits and beans; limit consumption of processed foods; limit foods high in fat, starch and sugar; get your minerals and vitamins from foods not supplements; and, limit consumption of alcohol, red and processed meat, and sugary drinks.
• If you’re a cancer survivor and want more information about the Living Fit program, contact Whaples at 508-495-7685 or kwhaples@capecodhealth.org.